April 7, 2012

Case #13: American Soldier Steven Gibbs Dog ID Tag

Gary left this as a comment on my Olive Tree Genealogy blog. Unfortunately there was no return email. Usually requests are submitted to my email and I can then ask questions and request a photo of the ID Tag so if Gary is reading this, I hope he will contact me at olivetreegenealogy AT gmail.com

Meantime here is Gary's submission, copied and pasted so it is as he wrote it. Since he hasn't used any capital letters in the submission it may be safe to assume that Steven's middle initial is "L" and not "I"

hello ive found a american dog tag inthe forest of dean ,
gloucestershire england the name is steven l gibbs the number is
32265500 t42-43 A bottom right cofner is a p . i would like it
reunited with the family if possible

If the middle initial is "L" the soldier may be this one found on Ancestry's US World War II Army Enlistment Records 1938-1946

Name:

Steven L Gibbs

Birth Year:

1918

Race:

Negro, citizen (Black)

Nativity State or Country:

Pennsylvania

State of Residence:

Delaware

Enlistment Date:

15 Apr 1942

Enlistment State:

New Jersey

Enlistment City:

Fort Dix

Branch:

Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA

Branch Code:

Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA

Grade:

Private

Grade Code:

Private

Term of Enlistment:

Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency,
plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise
according to law

Looking at the information given that was on the tag, we are assuming Army. The number would be the guy's social service number, and the T 42-43 is probably the date he received his tetanus shot. The P may stand for Protestant. The A may be his blood type.

Hopefully the gentleman who has the tag will respond and maybe offer a pic or a bit more info. I don't even know if I have the right guy =0)

I have an email in to Fort Dix to see what units enlisted there in 1942. Then I can research whether or not any of those units ended up near the Forest of Dean (or the UK for that matter), so we can determine if we even have the right guy.

Have a great Easter. Will keep you posted as to what I learn from Fort Dix.

This is from Angela, of Leaves of Heritage Genealogy. I've edited it for privacy reasons.

Amazing investigative work from Angela, now to hope that the person with the Dog Tags contacts me via email! I have other info to pass on to him that can't be posted here publicly

From Angela:

Ok, so it looks like Beulah and Steven may not have had biological children. The obit of Charles Gibbs states she is his adopted mother, with [name edited] being an adopted sister.: Charles A. Gibbs, 33 DOVER ? Charles A. Gibbs of Dover died Friday, April 15, 2005, in his home, surrounded by his wife and children. He was 33. Mr. Gibbs was born June 26, 1971. He was the first graduate of Faith Elementary and Middle School. He attended Delaware State University for 3? years. He was employed with Bank of America in Dover for three months and had been employed by Aetna for four years. Mr. Gibbs was known to write songs, sing and arrange music. He had a great passion for music and used his God-given talent to minister through song. Everyone who knew him knew that it was who he was. "Gibbs and Linky" as they called him was loved by many. He portrayed his personal love for the Lord in his music and through his character. In addition to his music, he also loved his children, ping-pong,....

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Death Finds a Way: A Janie Riley Mystery by Lorine McGinnis SchulzeJanie Riley is an avid genealogist with a habit of stumbling on to dead bodies. She and her husband head to Salt Lake City Utah to research Janie's elusive 4th great-grandmother. But her search into the past leads her to a dark secret. Can she solve the mysteries of the past and the present before disaster strikes?

I'm an incurable collector of
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